Name Help is a series at Appellation Mountain. Every week, one reader’s name questions will be discussed.
We’re relying on thoughtful comments from the community to help expectant parents narrow down their name decisions. Thank you in advance for sharing your insight!
Marisa writes:
I have a 12 year old daughter named Paige Riley. It was my favorite name then, and it’s still my favorite name now. I cannot imagine my sweet, strong girl with another name!
My new boyfriend and I are expecting a baby together in October. It will be a delivery surprise, which is more stressful than I originally thought when I agreed to not find out in advance.
His list of names is:
- BOYS: Stephen (but he pronounces it like Stefan), Scott, Jack
- GIRLS: Jeanne/Jeannie, Hope, Denise, Robin
Paige has a list of names, too! Her ideas are:
- BOYS: Julian, Sebastian
- GIRLS: Rosalie
My favorites are:
- BOYS: Wyatt, Grayson, Nolan
- GIRLS: Avery, Quinn, Kinsley
The baby’s last name will end with an S, so we are ruling out names like Miles and Brooks.
Please read on for my response, and leave your thoughtful suggestions in the comments.
Abby replies:
How exciting to be expecting your second – and how fun that your daughter can suggest names, too!
A few things stand out to me:
- It seems like your style hasn’t changed too much over the years, even if the names you’re all about in 2022 are different than your favorites with your daughter. Avery, Quinn, and Kinsley all sound like sisters for Paige Riley – modern, upbeat names with a certain amount of unisex style. The boys’ names on your list all sound like their brothers.
- Your boyfriend’s tastes are a little more surprising. They’re super-midcentury! Well, Stephen makes me wonder if he’s a Golden State Warriors fan. Is there a story behind any of his favorites?
- Your daughter has great taste in names! Older siblings have sometimes told me that they’ve been involved in naming their much-younger siblings. I was eleven when my brother was born, and I still vividly remember sitting down to discuss names.
Looking at the names themselves, a few of them jump out at me:
JACK or JACKSON
It seems like the obvious compromise choice. Would Jackson called Jack appeal to you more? I can imagine a name like Jack Wyatt, Jack Nolan, Jack Grayson, Jack Sebastian, or Jackson Scott working well.
AVERY JEANNE
On the other hand, I think Jeanne sounds like the perfect middle name. It works with Kinsley, too, but I think I like it best with Avery. And how great are Paige Riley and Avery Jeanne as sister names?
QUINN ROSALIE
I’m not sure if your boyfriend is on board with dropping all of his favorites for a daughter’s name, but if Jack is your boy name, then it feels right that you’d get a little more input for a daughter’s name.
KINSLEY HOPE
Another sweet combination taking a first from your list, with a middle from your boyfriend’s favorites.
It might also be worth talking about the inspiration behind your boyfriend’s choices.
Maybe he’s just ahead of the curve – Jeanne, for example, peaked in the 1940s, so I’d expect we will be hearing it make a comeback in another dozen years or so.
But if there’s personal meaning attached to some of the names on his list, then they probably deserve more consideration.
Plus, maybe there’s an opportunity for creativity? If he wants to honor his beloved aunt Denise, that could also include her surname and middle name, for starters.
Piper Lee (mom’s style)
Or Piper Jean to include dad’s style
Bradley Nolan (maybe the Brad part can convice dad, since it seems to be his style)
All three lists are pretty good, so I think there’s room to combine any of these names for a sibling for Paige Riley!
Here are some possible names, as well as the combinations that stuck out to me…
++ JULES STEPHEN / STEPHEN JULES — I like your daughter’s suggestion for Julian but I thought maybe “Jules” fits the kind of image that names like “Wyatt, Grayson, and Nolan” emulate.
++ KINSLEY HOPE — Second this! I actually really love the thought of Paige & Kinsley together. They sound like siblings already.
++ ROSE AVERIE / ROSE AVERY — Looks like your boyfriend and your daughter like that first syllable “Ro” and “Rose” is both timeless, kind of unexpected as a first compared to her more elaborate variant names. Depends on where you live! And have you considered the alternative spelling of “Avery”?
You all really have great lists, so I think you’ll come up with a winning duo regardless of what is said here.
All the best to your growing family! x